Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Everything is Graded!
All the work in my possession has been graded ... check to see if you are missing anything! :)
Friday, April 26, 2013
Day Ninety Four Overview
Day Ninety Four Overview
- we began class with two short warmup questions related to gravity
- one question asked ... What do you think would happen if you rang out a soaked towel while on a spaceship?
- the other question asked ... Do you think it is possible to grow a plant on a spaceship?
Gravity Warmup
- I then showed the class the answer to both of their questions
What Happens When You Wring a Washcloth In Orbit
Plants Grow Fine Without Gravity
- before getting into notes I showed the students a MinutePhysics clip
- we then began to take our first set of notes for the unit Forces in Motion
Forces in Motion Notes
- gravity as a force of attraction was explained to the students
- it is not just the Earth pulling you towards the center of the Earth, you also pull the center of the Earth towards you!
- as mass increases gravity increases
- think of a weightlifter
- the more plates that are added, the more pull downwards from gravity
- as distance increases gravity decreases
- think of a long distance relationship
- the more distance the less attraction (for the most part :) )
- we also talked about the difference between mass and weight
- with the last few minutes of class the students were handed a reading and a half sheet of questions to complete for homework
How Does Gravity Work Article
Gravity Homework
Homework
- complete the half sheet of questions that were assigned with the How Does Gravity Work Article
Science News
Solving The Mystery of Supercharged Lightning
- we began class with two short warmup questions related to gravity
- one question asked ... What do you think would happen if you rang out a soaked towel while on a spaceship?
- the other question asked ... Do you think it is possible to grow a plant on a spaceship?
Gravity Warmup
- I then showed the class the answer to both of their questions
What Happens When You Wring a Washcloth In Orbit
Plants Grow Fine Without Gravity
- before getting into notes I showed the students a MinutePhysics clip
- we then began to take our first set of notes for the unit Forces in Motion
Forces in Motion Notes
- gravity as a force of attraction was explained to the students
- it is not just the Earth pulling you towards the center of the Earth, you also pull the center of the Earth towards you!
- as mass increases gravity increases
- think of a weightlifter
- the more plates that are added, the more pull downwards from gravity
- as distance increases gravity decreases
- think of a long distance relationship
- the more distance the less attraction (for the most part :) )
- we also talked about the difference between mass and weight
- with the last few minutes of class the students were handed a reading and a half sheet of questions to complete for homework
How Does Gravity Work Article
Gravity Homework
Homework
- complete the half sheet of questions that were assigned with the How Does Gravity Work Article
Science News
Solving The Mystery of Supercharged Lightning
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Day Ninety Three Overview
Day Ninety Three Overview
- the concept of gravity was introduced through some very interesting video clips that caught the student's attention
- clip #1 - Stephen Hawking explaining how imperfections in the early universe allowed gravity to organize all the matter created in the big bang
- clip #2 - BBC broadcaster explaining what he is experiencing while on board the "Vomit Comet"
- while watching the clips the students were asked to write down 6 things that they learned from watching the clips
Homework
- use the 6 things that you learned to make up a 6 panel comic book page about gravity
Science News
Suicide Bombing Bacteria Could Fight Infections
- the concept of gravity was introduced through some very interesting video clips that caught the student's attention
- clip #1 - Stephen Hawking explaining how imperfections in the early universe allowed gravity to organize all the matter created in the big bang
- clip #2 - BBC broadcaster explaining what he is experiencing while on board the "Vomit Comet"
Homework
- use the 6 things that you learned to make up a 6 panel comic book page about gravity
Science News
Suicide Bombing Bacteria Could Fight Infections
Day Ninety Two Overview
Day Ninety Two Overview
- we spent class taking our test on Motion
- concepts tested were speed, velocity, acceleration, net force, and friction
Homework
- extra credit crossword
Motion Crossword
Science News
Humans Have a Tender Spot For Robots
- we spent class taking our test on Motion
- concepts tested were speed, velocity, acceleration, net force, and friction
Homework
- extra credit crossword
Motion Crossword
Science News
Humans Have a Tender Spot For Robots
Friday, April 19, 2013
Day Ninety One Overview
Day Ninety One Overview
- we began class by checking / going over the review packets that were assigned the class prior
- I took questions from students that had particular issues that they were having trouble understanding
- students that did not have the review packet complete were encouraged to complete it and study it over the weekend so that they would be prepared for their test
- after going over the packet the students watched an episode of Bill Nye titled Friction
Bill Nye - Friction
Bill Nye: Friction - Worksheet
- with the rest of class we played Smartboard Baseball - Motion
- the winning team received bonus points on their upcoming Motion test
Homework
- study study study for the Motion test
Science News
A New Class of Supernova
- we began class by checking / going over the review packets that were assigned the class prior
- I took questions from students that had particular issues that they were having trouble understanding
- students that did not have the review packet complete were encouraged to complete it and study it over the weekend so that they would be prepared for their test
- after going over the packet the students watched an episode of Bill Nye titled Friction
Bill Nye - Friction
Bill Nye: Friction - Worksheet
- with the rest of class we played Smartboard Baseball - Motion
- the winning team received bonus points on their upcoming Motion test
Homework
- study study study for the Motion test
Science News
A New Class of Supernova
Day Ninety Overview
Day Ninety Overview
- with the shortened class period we were able to go over the graphing problems that the students had for homework the previous class period
- the students were reminded that on a distance vs. time graph a straight line equals a constant speed, a flat line means the object is not moving, and a curved line means the object is accelerating
Homework
- finish the chapter review packet for next class so we can play a review game!
Motion Review Packet
Science News
Superstorm Sandy Shook The Earth
- with the shortened class period we were able to go over the graphing problems that the students had for homework the previous class period
- the students were reminded that on a distance vs. time graph a straight line equals a constant speed, a flat line means the object is not moving, and a curved line means the object is accelerating
Homework
- finish the chapter review packet for next class so we can play a review game!
Motion Review Packet
Science News
Superstorm Sandy Shook The Earth
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Day Eighty Nine Overview
Day Eighty Nine Overview
- the students worked on a units challenge for the shortened class period
- students that completed the activity correctly and on time received free hw passes
Units Practice Challenge
Homework
- I gave the students two graphing distance versus time worksheets
Swimmer Graph Sheets
Constant And Changing Speeds
Science News
Could Wood Feed The World
- the students worked on a units challenge for the shortened class period
- students that completed the activity correctly and on time received free hw passes
Units Practice Challenge
Homework
- I gave the students two graphing distance versus time worksheets
Swimmer Graph Sheets
Constant And Changing Speeds
Science News
Could Wood Feed The World
Day Eighty Eight Overview
Day Eighty Eight Overview
- with this class the students worked on applying their new found knowledge of friction in an interactive lab activity
- the students were asked to see how different factors affected the amount of friction that their shoes experienced on a lab bench
- the students were also asked to come up with a hypothesis prior to their activity, and then state whether or not their results supported or did not support their hypothesis
Friction Lab
Homework
- the Friction Lab is due one week from when it was started
Science News
The Future of our Energy
- with this class the students worked on applying their new found knowledge of friction in an interactive lab activity
- the students were asked to see how different factors affected the amount of friction that their shoes experienced on a lab bench
- the students were also asked to come up with a hypothesis prior to their activity, and then state whether or not their results supported or did not support their hypothesis
Friction Lab
Homework
- the Friction Lab is due one week from when it was started
Science News
The Future of our Energy
Day Eighty Seven Overview
Day Eighty Seven Overview
- we began class with a discussion about why we would need forces in our day to day lives
- some of the answers included sports, cars, moving things, and carpentry
- I asked the students to pull out their note packets and we discussed ways that we could reduce friction
- after writing down ways that we could reduce friction we then talked about ways that we could increase friction
- we then wrote down ways to increase friction
- after taking down notes I asked the students to put their packets away and gave them a friction supplemental activity
- the students we told that they could work in groups for 15 minutes to complete the activity
Friction Notes
- after the 15 minutes we went over the worksheet together as a class and finalized some of the friction concepts that we had been learning about
- with the rest of class we watched some more of the mega roller coaster movie
Homework
- catch up on late work, hand in any overdue labs
Science News
Research Uses Mirrors To Make Solar Energy Cost Competitive
- we began class with a discussion about why we would need forces in our day to day lives
- some of the answers included sports, cars, moving things, and carpentry
- I asked the students to pull out their note packets and we discussed ways that we could reduce friction
- after writing down ways that we could reduce friction we then talked about ways that we could increase friction
- we then wrote down ways to increase friction
- after taking down notes I asked the students to put their packets away and gave them a friction supplemental activity
- the students we told that they could work in groups for 15 minutes to complete the activity
Friction Notes
- after the 15 minutes we went over the worksheet together as a class and finalized some of the friction concepts that we had been learning about
- with the rest of class we watched some more of the mega roller coaster movie
Homework
- catch up on late work, hand in any overdue labs
Science News
Research Uses Mirrors To Make Solar Energy Cost Competitive
Day Eighty Six Overview
Day Eighty Six Overview
- this day in class we began to formally look into forces
- we began class with a ticket in the door activity that asked the students two questions
1. Compare and contrast a person in space and a person on Earth. What makes someone in space behave differently than someone on Earth?
2. What do you think makes something start to move? What do you think makes something stop moving? Propose a scientific explanation to defend your hypothesis.
- the ticket in the door sparked some good conversation and highlighted to me that the students were coming into this lesson with a great deal of background knowledge
- after the ticket in the door I showed the students two short video clips
1. a science graduate student asking people "what is a force?"
What is a Force?
2. footage from the Apollo 8 launch
Apollo 8 Launch
- we then discussed that for something to be a force it must have 4 things
1. a force is a push or a pull
2. all forces have size and direction
3. forces are measure in Newtons (N)
4. not all forces result in motion
- things move when forces are not balanced
- when forces are balanced there is no motion and when forces are not balanced there is motion
- to practice the concept of balanced and unbalanced forces we worked on some mini white board problems
- we then briefly discussed the force known as friction
- friction is the force that opposes motion
- friction can occur when things are moving (kinetic friction) and when things are not moving (static friction)
- there are three types of kinetic friction ... sliding, rolling, and fluid
- to display their new knowledge of friction I asked the students to either act, sing, or draw an example of kinetic friction or static friction
Homework
- make up any late work
Science News
Bad Decisions Arise From Bad Information, Not Faulty Brain Circuits
- this day in class we began to formally look into forces
- we began class with a ticket in the door activity that asked the students two questions
1. Compare and contrast a person in space and a person on Earth. What makes someone in space behave differently than someone on Earth?
2. What do you think makes something start to move? What do you think makes something stop moving? Propose a scientific explanation to defend your hypothesis.
- the ticket in the door sparked some good conversation and highlighted to me that the students were coming into this lesson with a great deal of background knowledge
- after the ticket in the door I showed the students two short video clips
1. a science graduate student asking people "what is a force?"
What is a Force?
2. footage from the Apollo 8 launch
Apollo 8 Launch
- we then discussed that for something to be a force it must have 4 things
1. a force is a push or a pull
2. all forces have size and direction
3. forces are measure in Newtons (N)
4. not all forces result in motion
- things move when forces are not balanced
- when forces are balanced there is no motion and when forces are not balanced there is motion
- to practice the concept of balanced and unbalanced forces we worked on some mini white board problems
- we then briefly discussed the force known as friction
- friction is the force that opposes motion
- friction can occur when things are moving (kinetic friction) and when things are not moving (static friction)
- there are three types of kinetic friction ... sliding, rolling, and fluid
- to display their new knowledge of friction I asked the students to either act, sing, or draw an example of kinetic friction or static friction
Homework
- make up any late work
Science News
Bad Decisions Arise From Bad Information, Not Faulty Brain Circuits
Day Eighty Five Overview
Day Eighty Five Overview
- we began class with a "stir the class" activity to determine what the students already knew about force
- the students were asked to come up with three things about force in their pairs
- they were then asked to "stir the class" and complete a list of 8 things, including the three they had already come up with
- while the students worked on that activity I used most of that time to hand back quite a few assignments that had been graded and needed to be passed back
- with the last half of class we watched a roller coaster movie to help explain a real life example of forces in action
- the movie also served as inspiration for the student's homework assignment
National Geographic Mega-structures - Roller Coaster
Homework
- draw at least a half page rendering of a roller coaster that you would like built
- on the other half page or on the back of a page, use your knowledge of forces to explain how the parts of the roller coaster work (ex. the cart falls down the hill due to the force of gravity)
Science News
Neighbors Move Electrons Jointly
- we began class with a "stir the class" activity to determine what the students already knew about force
- the students were asked to come up with three things about force in their pairs
- they were then asked to "stir the class" and complete a list of 8 things, including the three they had already come up with
- while the students worked on that activity I used most of that time to hand back quite a few assignments that had been graded and needed to be passed back
- with the last half of class we watched a roller coaster movie to help explain a real life example of forces in action
- the movie also served as inspiration for the student's homework assignment
National Geographic Mega-structures - Roller Coaster
Homework
- draw at least a half page rendering of a roller coaster that you would like built
- on the other half page or on the back of a page, use your knowledge of forces to explain how the parts of the roller coaster work (ex. the cart falls down the hill due to the force of gravity)
Science News
Neighbors Move Electrons Jointly
Monday, April 15, 2013
Day Eighty Four Overview
Day Eighty Four Overview
- we began class by checking and going over the assigned acceleration practice problems
- the worksheet was assigned so that students could get the necessary practice solving for acceleration as well as other variables in the acceleration formula
- after going over the homework we talked some more about graphing speed and acceleration
On a distance versus time graph ...
- a flat horizontal line means the object is not moving
- a straight line means that the object is moving at constant speed
- a curved line means that the object is accelerating
- we practiced those problems with a couple quick classwork worksheets
Bug Race
Graph Interpretation Time vs. Distance
- we finished the last half of class by talking a quiz on the concepts of motion that we had studied up until that point
Homework
- make up any late work and quizzes
Science News
Carbon Dioxide Removal Can Lower Climate Costs
- we began class by checking and going over the assigned acceleration practice problems
- the worksheet was assigned so that students could get the necessary practice solving for acceleration as well as other variables in the acceleration formula
- after going over the homework we talked some more about graphing speed and acceleration
On a distance versus time graph ...
- a flat horizontal line means the object is not moving
- a straight line means that the object is moving at constant speed
- a curved line means that the object is accelerating
- we practiced those problems with a couple quick classwork worksheets
Bug Race
Graph Interpretation Time vs. Distance
- we finished the last half of class by talking a quiz on the concepts of motion that we had studied up until that point
Homework
- make up any late work and quizzes
Science News
Carbon Dioxide Removal Can Lower Climate Costs
Great Science Quotes
"Bad times have a scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge." - Carl Sagan
"Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge." - Carl Sagan
Day Eighty Three Overview
Day Eighty Three Overview
- we started class with some acceleration practice problems in the note packet as well as another acceleration worksheet
- after the students were done with those practice problems we started working on another acceleration worksheet
Acceleration Practice
Motion Worksheet #2 - Page 1
Motion Worksheet #3 - Page 2
- the best way to learn acceleration problems is for the students to be immersed in the topic
- after the students were done working on the practice problems we went over them as a class
- we then watched a brain pop clip that helped to finalize the concept of acceleration and what it means
Brain Pop - Page 1
Brain Pop - Page 2
- I then quickly introduced graphing speed and acceleration to the students, and how the graphs corresponded to what they were learning in the motion unit
Homework
- finish the odd numbers on the assigned acceleration practice worksheet
Acceleration Practice - Homework
Science News
Cutting Specific Pollutants Would Slow Sea Level Rise
- we started class with some acceleration practice problems in the note packet as well as another acceleration worksheet
- after the students were done with those practice problems we started working on another acceleration worksheet
Acceleration Practice
Motion Worksheet #2 - Page 1
Motion Worksheet #3 - Page 2
- the best way to learn acceleration problems is for the students to be immersed in the topic
- after the students were done working on the practice problems we went over them as a class
- we then watched a brain pop clip that helped to finalize the concept of acceleration and what it means
Brain Pop - Page 1
Brain Pop - Page 2
- I then quickly introduced graphing speed and acceleration to the students, and how the graphs corresponded to what they were learning in the motion unit
Homework
- finish the odd numbers on the assigned acceleration practice worksheet
Acceleration Practice - Homework
Science News
Cutting Specific Pollutants Would Slow Sea Level Rise
Day Eighty Two Overview
Day Eighty Two Overview
- students finished working on their hot wheel labs
- this took approximately half of the period
- with the second half of the period we began to take notes on the concept of acceleration
- it was explained that acceleration is when velocity changes
- that can mean when a speed goes up or down or when something changes direction
- this is because velocity is speed AND direction
- I emphasized to the students that something can be still moving without accelerating
- this can happen when the object stays going the same velocity
- I also showed the students a simulation that allowed the students to watch a person moving on the Smartboard along with a graph being generated along the way
Homework
- work on finishing up the Hot Wheels Lab
Science News
The True Shape of Snowflakes
- students finished working on their hot wheel labs
- this took approximately half of the period
- with the second half of the period we began to take notes on the concept of acceleration
- it was explained that acceleration is when velocity changes
- that can mean when a speed goes up or down or when something changes direction
- this is because velocity is speed AND direction
- I emphasized to the students that something can be still moving without accelerating
- this can happen when the object stays going the same velocity
- I also showed the students a simulation that allowed the students to watch a person moving on the Smartboard along with a graph being generated along the way
Homework
- work on finishing up the Hot Wheels Lab
Science News
The True Shape of Snowflakes
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)